1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is generally directed to an apparatus for use in treating germinated seed prior to planting the seed, as well as a method of treating such seed.
2. Discussion of Related Art
It is known to spread seed, particularly agricultural seed, through the use of both land and aerial seed spreaders. Regardless of the particular manner of spreading the seed, it has heretofore been proposed to treat the seed with insecticides, fungicides and the like prior to spreading thereof to enhance the effectiveness of the seeding. Such treating can be performed upon dry or pre-soaked seed and is generally accomplished by spraying a treating liquid directly on the seed. Previous seed treating apparatus and methods have only been used to treat dry seed, prior to soaking, which encourages pre-germination and seed sprout or radicle emergence from the seed coat.
When treating seed, it is important to treat all the seed uniformly. In other words, it is important that substantially all of the seeds be treated as equally as possible. Therefore, any apparatus for treating seed must be adjustable to accommodate varying types and flow rates of seeds to assure correct treatment of the seed.
Known seed treating apparatus fail to provide a way of treating pre-soaked, pre-germinated seeds without causing damage to the seed germ and/or radicle that emerges from the seed coat. Therefore, there exists a need in the art for a seed treating apparatus, as well as a method of treating seed, which overcomes these and other drawbacks associated with the prior art.